De La Salle’s “Crazy Rush” Surpasses the San Ramon Valley

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For the second time in less than a year, the De La Salle Spartans took a last-second win when they were hoping to stop and send the game into overtime.

An interception by Billy Haggerty allowed Arshon Salkhi to make a fast break with 2.6 seconds left in regulation as the Spartans finished 8-0 to beat the San Ramon Valley Wolves 59–55 in the East Bay Athletic League (EBAL) . thriller in front of a packed house in Concord.

“You think you have to stop to go into overtime,” head coach Markus Schroeder said. “Then all of a sudden your team has the ball and you’re racing across the open layup court.”

Last February, the Spartans beat Miramonte at a similar last-second stoppage in the North Coast Section (NCS) Open Division semi-finals. In that game, they beat Matador 25–7 in the second half, and after Miramonte hit with 11 seconds left. Haggerty caught the ball on the rebound and passed to Alec Blair, who hit Javon Johnson with the winning basket.

This time, Haggerty forced an interception at the top of the arc and passed to Salhi, who caught him on the free throw line and scored. The referees returned the time to 2.6 seconds after giving SRV a timeout, but the Wolves’ attempt at a full court pass hit the ceiling. Haggerty made two free throws to seal the game.

“We executed to the end, and that’s the whole point,” Schroeder said.

San Ramon Valley (16-4, 0-3 EBAL) led 55-51 behind Seamus Dealey and -1 with 2:01 left but Salkhi scored on the spin to cut the lead to two with 1:35 left . . De La Salle (16-4, 3-1) got a stoppage and although Blair couldn’t score in the drive, he bet on a 41.4 to go loss to equalize (Evan Wells may have also received the ball with his hand) . , but Blair was credited with two points).

The Wolves then shortened the time for the shot, and Haggerty, who is known to have played snappy and rough for three years in the collegiate lineup, cleared the ball to set up Salhi for the decisive shot.

“Once it was a two-point game, I was like, ‘We’re going to win this,’” Blair said. “We stayed calm, believed in each other and remained confident.”

De La Salle led 38–31 at the start of the third match after Haggerty’s loss but failed to score for the next five minutes. Parker McClaury’s three-pointer with 50.9 seconds left in the quarter gave the Wolves a 41-40 lead.

In the fourth quarter, the lead changed hands seven times. Leo Ricketts, hero of Monday’s victory over national team player West Lynn, hit a 3-pointer to put the Spartans up 45–43 with 6:42 left, but Will Ambidge’s shot gave SRV a 50–49 lead with 4:29 left. go. Ambidge, a 6-foot-7 junior, scored again to give the Wolves the lead with 3:23 left.

Sophomore Luke Isaac led SRV with 21 points, including a three-pointer that cut the DLS lead to 49–48 with 4:56 remaining. He scored four points in a bizarre sequence late in the first half when he hit a three-pointer and called a foul, but was ordered to hit a 1-and-1 instead of one free throw.

Schroeder was informed that the foul occurred long after the shot was made, and the decision remained in place despite many complaints from De La Salle. Isaac hit the first free throw and Seamus Deeley grabbed the offensive rebound and was fouled after missing the second. Deely then converted both free throws to put the Wolves to a point, although Blair scored on the other end to close the half.

Blair led all players with 23 points and 11 rebounds.

“We take it for granted,” Schroeder said of the 6-foot-6 sophomore. “We make him guard his best player, get the ball in, score, play and all that stuff.”

Salhi scored just two points on Monday and only two points out in the fourth quarter on Wednesday night, but he has six points in the last four minutes. His shot from the free throw line at the end of the shot clock gave his team a 51-50 lead with 3:53 left.

“We weren’t worried at all,” the younger said.

Haggerty and Wells each scored 12 points, while McClaury finished with 10. Deely added nine points and five assists for the Wolves, who lost their first three games in a busy league. Of SRV’s four losses this season, none have exceeded six points, and no team has led by more than seven points during Wednesday’s game.

On Friday, the Wolves will host Amador Valley (11-8, 1-2). De La Salle will host Dublin (14-6, 3-0). The Gaels are one of only two teams, along with Dougherty Valley (18-1, 3-0), to win each of their first three EBAL games.

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